Most automobile and truck batteries contain some form of acid. The acid, through charging, gives off fumes which condense on the battery surface. When the acid fumes condense on the terminals they begin to corrode them in a short time so as to make the connections to the battery less conductive and eventually non-conductive. This problem causes a malfunction in the entire electrical system. The result to industry is lost man hours as well as monetary loss. Also, starting time in the winter is greatly affected due to battery corrosion.
I have tried a number of different types of lubricating greases in combination with an acid neutralizing agent such as sodium bicarbonate to correct the problem of corrosion to the battery. One such composition that I tried was sodium bicarbonate with vaseline or similar types of petroleum jelly. The main problem I found out by trying this composition was that in summer months it would melt from the heat of the sun and engine temperature which can be quite high in many instances. I also tried other forms of lubricating grease such as chassis gear grease in combination with the sodium bicarbonate. However, I found that many of the greases that I tried insulated or deactivated the sodium bicarbonate so that it would no longer function to neutralize the acid.